SAN ANTONIO: Victor Wembanyama had 30 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks and the San Antonio Spurs had a season high in points to overcome 35 points and 13 rebounds from Giannis Antetokounmpo and beat the Milwaukee Bucks 144-118 on Friday night.
Keldon Johnson added 24 points and Stephon Castle had 20 as San Antonio snapped a two-game skid and won for just the second time in seven games.
Damian Lillard had 22 points for Milwaukee. Khris Middleton added 21.
Wembanyama was 9 for 20 from the field in a dynamic showing one day after being named to his first All-Star Game as a Western Conference reserve.
Wembanyama banked in a 34-foot 3-pointer that hit the backboard, bounced off the front of the rim, hit the backboard again and dropped in with 7:18 remaining in the third quarter. The 3-pointer drew loud gasps and cheers from the fans and left Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers with his arms raised in puzzlement.
Wembanyama closed out a 14-point quarter by making a running, one-legged 3-pointer.
Takeaways
Bucks: Middleton was 8 for 9 from the field, including 3 for 4 on 3-pointers, in 23 minutes off the bench.
Spurs: Castle is averaging 16.8 points and 3.3 assists in his past nine games since returning to the starting lineup.
Key moment
Wembanyama was held to two points on 1-for-4 shooting in the first quarter, but he had three blocks to help San Antonio end the period tied at 35. Wembanyama blocked Antetokounmpo’s shots twice in 14 seconds in the opening two minutes of the game. Antetokounmpo avoided a third block by powering in a dunk over Wembanyama.
Key stat
San Antonio shot 15 for 25 from the field in outscoring Milwaukee 45-30 in the third quarter.
Up next
The Bucks host Memphis on Sunday night. The Spurs host Miami on Saturday night to complete a three-game homestand.
Wembanyama has 30 points, 14 rebounds, 6 blocks to help Spurs beat Antetokounmpo, Bucks, 144-118
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Wembanyama has 30 points, 14 rebounds, 6 blocks to help Spurs beat Antetokounmpo, Bucks, 144-118
- Wembanyama was 9 for 20 from the field in an dynamic showing one day after being named to his first All-Star Game as a Western Conference reserve
Shami admits playing at one venue ‘definitely helps’ finalists India
- Shami returned figures of 3-48 to set up India’s four-wicket win over Australia in the semifinals
- India refused to travel to Champions Trophy hosts Pakistan, won all four of their games in Dubai
DUBAI: India pace spearhead Mohammed Shami has broken ranks by admitting that playing all their Champions Trophy games at one venue in Dubai has been to their advantage.
Shami returned figures of 3-48 to set up India’s four-wicket win over Australia in the semifinals on Tuesday in Dubai.
India coach Gautam Gambhir afterwards lashed out at critics who have said playing at the same Dubai International Cricket Stadium each time is unfair.
India refused to travel to Champions Trophy hosts Pakistan over political tensions and have won all four of their games at their temporary home.
They will face South Africa or New Zealand in Sunday’s final, again in Dubai.
The other seven teams in the ODI competition have meanwhile had to shuttle between three Pakistani cities and the United Arab Emirates.
“It definitely helped us because we know the conditions and the behavior of the pitch,” Shami said Tuesday after his pivotal role in beating Australia.
“It is a plus point that you are playing all the matches at one venue.”
As part of the hybrid arrangement of the tournament, South Africa were forced to travel to Dubai, only to return to Pakistan again less than 24 hours later without playing a game.
India are unbeaten in the 10 ODIs they have played in Dubai, winning nine.
Shami, 34, claimed a five-wicket haul in India’s opening win over Bangladesh and has bowled with pace and accuracy.
But a question on getting reverse swing with the old ball got Shami pleading with cricket authorities to allow the use of saliva to polish the ball in the 50-over format.
The International Cricket Council in 2022 made a ban on saliva — brought in during the Covid pandemic — permanent.
“We are trying to reverse, but you are not getting the use of saliva into the game,” Shami told reporters.
“We are constantly appealing to allow the use of saliva and it will be interesting with the reverse swing.”
The use of saliva to shine one side of the old ball and keep the other rough helps fast bowlers get the leather ball to swing late and can be a lethal weapon in the final few overs of an ODI match.
They can still use sweat.
After a strong start to the tournament, Shami left the field briefly in the win over Pakistan.
He has now put all fears of any fitness issues to rest with two matches in three days and bowling his full quota of 10 overs against Australia.
“I am trying to get my rhythm back and contribute more for the team,” said Shami.
He added: “I am ready to bowl long spells.”
Gambhir called Shami “a world-class performer.”
“He’s phenomenal and the hunger he brings on the table, the way he trains, the way he practices — that’s why you see all those results.”
LeBron James first player in NBA history to score 50,000 points
- Los Angeles Lakers superstar went into the game against the New Orleans Pelicans with 49,999 regular and postseason points
- Among active NBA players, only Kevin Durant with just over 35,000 points makes the top 10
LOS ANGELES, United States: LeBron James became the first player in NBA history to score 50,000 career points on Tuesday, extending his lead as the league’s all-time record scorer by reaching a milestone tally that may never be surpassed.
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar went into the game against the New Orleans Pelicans with 49,999 regular and postseason points after a 17-point performance in Sunday’s win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
It did not take long for the 40-year-old NBA icon to get the solitary point needed to reach the 50,000-point barrier.
James, who is in dazzling form in the 22nd season of a glittering career, gathered a pass from Luka Doncic and unfurled a sublime 25-foot three-pointer to move to 50,002 points with the Crypto.com Arena crowd roaring their acclaim.
James had passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s previous all-time regular-season scoring record of 38,387 points in 2023 – itself a record that had stood for 39 years.
James is now nearly 6,000 points clear of Abdul-Jabbar’s total career points tally of 44,149, with Karl Malone third (41,689 points) and the late Kobe Bryant fourth with 39,283 points.
Michael Jordan is fifth on the all-time scoring list with 38,279.
Among active NBA players, only Kevin Durant with just over 35,000 points – roughly 15,000 points behind James – makes the top 10.
Tickets for Champions Trophy final go on sale online and at Dubai International Stadium
- India pulled off a tense chase to beat Australia by four wickets in the first semifinal on Tuesday
- Cricket fans can avail an early bird offer on limited tickets starting from 250 dirhams, the ICC says
KARACHI: Tickets for the International Cricket Council (ICC) Champions Trophy final have gone on sale online and at the Dubai International Stadium, the ICC said on Tuesday.
India pulled off a tense chase to beat Australia by four wickets in the first semifinal of the Champions Trophy in Dubai on Tuesday, with Virat Kohli hitting a polished 84 runs.
India will now play the final against winner of the New Zealand versus South Africa semifinal, which will be taking place in Lahore today.
“Tickets for the Sunday 9 March clash which starts at 13h00 local time will be available online here, whilst physical tickets will also be available at the Dubai International Stadium Box Office,” the ICC said in a statement.
“Fans can avail an early bird offer on limited tickets starting from 250 Dirhams.”
India have won all three of their games and are playing in Dubai after they refused to tour Champions Trophy hosts Pakistan for political reasons.
Captain Temba Bavuma said South Africa will not change their approach for Wednesday’s Champions Trophy semifinal against New Zealand despite the team’s poor record in knock-out matches.
South Africa have a history of coming up short on the global stage, losing their 2023 ODI World Cup semifinal to Australia and the T20 World Cup final to India last year. That continued a long trend of disappointing results at major tournaments, but Bavuma is keen not to dwell on the past.
“We will approach the semifinal as we normally would,” Bavuma, whose team topped Group B after big wins over England and Afghanistan, and a wash-out against Australia, said ahead of Wednesday’s clash.
“It’s just another game for us, yes it’s important but we definitely won’t be blowing it out of proportion that it’s a semifinal.”
Times Square boxing event in May promises to be big, with 3 fights and talk of half a million fans
- The fighters on the card are known: Ryan Garcia against Rolando “Rolly” Romero in the main event; Devin Haney against Jose Ramirez in the co-main; and Teofimo Lopez against Arnold Barboza Jr. in a title fight as the opener
- It’s the first card in the US for Ring Magazine, now owned by Turki Alalshikh, the head of Riyadh Season and the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia
NEW YORK: Big boxing in New York for long meant Madison Square Garden, in recent years Barclays Center as well.
Fight night in Times Square promises to be a whole different scene.
“I think we’re expecting half a million people, for free,” said Hall of Fame boxer Oscar De La Hoya, whose Golden Boy Promotions has three fighters on the May 2 tripleheader.
The fighters on the card are known: Ryan Garcia against Rolando “Rolly” Romero in the main event; Devin Haney against Jose Ramirez in the co-main; and Teofimo Lopez against Arnold Barboza Jr. in a title fight as the opener.
Not disclosed yet is what the setup will look like, how fans can access it, and just how exactly organizers got permission to close down one of the busiest attractions in the heart of one of the busiest cities in the world.
“It took a lot of money,” De La Hoya said with a laugh.
The card itself would be intriguing to boxing fans no matter where it was held. It’s headlined by Garcia returning from the one-year suspension he was given by the New York State Athletic Commission after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs when he fought Haney last April in Brooklyn.
Garcia knocked Haney down three times and won a majority decision that was eventually overturned and ruled a no-contest. Garcia wasn’t eligible to win Haney’s 140-pound title anyway, because he weighed in more than 3 pounds above the limit.
He has acknowledged problems with drinking and smoking and said he has put that behind him as he returns.
“I want to just show everybody that you could come back from anything and I want to show my dedication to the sport and just be a true professional,” Garcia said. “I admit my wrongs and I don’t want anybody to take my actions of drinking and smoking before the fight and try to think that’s a way to handle yourself as a professional.”
Neither Garcia nor Haney has fought since, and both are moving up to contest their fights at the welterweight limit of 147 pounds. Should both win, the plan is for a rematch between the two.
It’s the first card in the US for Ring Magazine, now owned by Turki Alalshikh, the head of Riyadh Season and the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia.
“We could have staged this event anywhere. We could have put it in any venue in New York, any venue in LA, any venue in Las Vegas and it would have sold out,” Ring Magazine chief operating officer Rick Reeno said. “We wanted to do something special, something iconic, because if we put this in any other venue, any other location, it just would have been a really big event with three great fights. We wanted something that like 25 years from now, people will look back and say, ‘Oh my God, can you believe they staged that crazy event in the heart of Times Square?’”
It could present challenges. De La Hoya said there is always concern about doing outdoor events because of the weather, which isn’t guaranteed to be ideal in the Northeast in early May.
“I don’t know if you guys have been in New York in May but it’s a little cold, don’t you think?” Romero said. “So they might have some heaters walking through.”
But De La Hoya isn’t concerned about the ability to pull off an event that other organizers said contains plans unlike they have ever seen.
“No, I think New York has handled big events. I mean, look, Times Square, New Year’s Eve, millions of people,” De La Hoya said. “It’s going to be an epic event, man. I’m happy to be part of it.”
Alcaraz chases third straight Indian Wells title
- Alcaraz, coming off a quarterfinal defeat in the Qatar Open, is seeded second behind Germany’s Alexander Zverev, who finished runner-up at the Australian Open to Italian world No. 1 Jannik Sinner
- All 32 seeded players receive a first-round bye, and Djokovic could face a tricky second-round opener against Nick Kyrgios
INDIAN WELLS, California: Carlos Alcaraz will take a softly-softly approach as he vies to become just the third man to win three straight titles at Indian Wells, where he could find a member of that exclusive club, Novak Djokovic, standing in his way in the quarterfinals.
“I will try not to think about it,” Alcaraz said of his bid to match the treble feat achieved by Djokovic in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and Roger Federer in 2004, ‘05 and ‘06.
“I will try just to enjoy it,” Alcaraz told reporters Tuesday as he prepped for the elite ATP Masters 1000 tournament that starts Wednesday alongside a WTA 1000 tournament.
“This tournament, every time that I come here, I enjoy so much practicing, playing. Everything for me here is so easy.
“So I will try not to think about it, just flow and see how it’s going to be, the tournament. But it is something that for me would be great to achieve.”
Alcaraz, coming off a quarterfinal defeat in the Qatar Open, is seeded second behind Germany’s Alexander Zverev, who finished runner-up at the Australian Open to Italian world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.
Sinner last month accepted a belated three-month ban after testing positive a year ago for traces of banned Clostebol.
The case initially saw him exonerated when authorities accepted his explanation that the drug entered his system when a physiotherapist using it to treat a wound gave him a massage.
The World Anti-Doping Agency appealed, the case dragging on through Sinner’s triumph at the Australian Open this year.
Alcaraz said Sinner’s absence doesn’t change his approach “at all.”
“I mean, Jannik’s not playing, but there are a lot of the best players in the world (that) are playing here,” he said. “I think the draw is really open.
“I’m just focused on my things, on myself, and I try to play good tennis here.”
The Spaniard could face a formidable quarterfinal test in Djokovic, who owns five Indian Wells titles overall.
Serbian superstar Djokovic leads their career head-to-head 5-3, including a quarterfinal triumph in four sets at the Australian Open.
All 32 seeded players receive a first-round bye, and Djokovic could face a tricky second-round opener against Nick Kyrgios.
The Australian, who fell to Djokovic in the 2022 Wimbledon final, will open against a qualifier.
Top-seeded Zverev is chasing a first Indian Wells title while third-seeded American Taylor Fritz lifted the trophy in the California desert in 2022.
Norway’s Casper Ruud is seeded fourth and Russian Daniil Medvedev — runner-up to Alcaraz the past two years — is seeded fifth.
The first-round spotlight will be on wild card Joao Fonseca, the 18-year-old Brazilian who upset Andre Rublev at the Australian Open and lifted his first ATP title in Buenos Aires in February.
Fonseca will open his campaign against Britain’s Jacob Fearnley, who has climbed from outside the top 500 in he world rankings this time last year to 81st.
